Free delivery for orders over $125!

Meet the Team: Kelly

written by

Bethany Fisher

posted on

January 31, 2025

Kelly Barnes interned with Whiffletree in the fall of 2022, then came on as a full time employee. With a million dollar smile, the best organizing abilities in the world, and a heart full of love for people, we’re so blessed to have her as part of our team.

Where did you grow up?

I grew up in Columbia, MO and moved to Fredericksburg, VA in 2000.

What did you do before you came to farming/Whiffletree?

Prior to farming, I was a carpenter and a caregiver. For several years, I worked on a farm one day a week, growing and harvesting vegetables. I was a Whiffletree customer for seven years before starting my internship here.

What inspired you to become a farmer?

I’ve struggled with chronic health issues for over half my life time. Eating chemical free food for even just a month produced such a dramatic reduction in the severity of my symptoms. This discovery steered my life in a new direction. Learning to produce food that could assist in healing my body rather than making me sicker became my goal. Studying nutrition became my hobby. Working on a farm became my dream. 

What are some things you didn’t expect to learn that farming has taught you?

Some things that I didn't expect to learn from farming:

  • How accurately cartoons depict animal characteristics and tendencies.
  • How relatable Jesus’s parables are to a farmer.
  • How deceptive marketing is regarding conventionally farmed food

What do you hope to accomplish through farming?

Someday I hope to utilize my farming experience in mission work, teaching people practical skills to provide for their families and communities. I would love to help victims rescued from human trafficking heal and build new lives.

Most memorable Whiffletree experience?

My most memorable Whiffletree experience is planting a six foot snake skin in a city-boy intern’s car for him to discover later.

What’s your favorite animal on the farm? And why?

My favorite animals are the cattle and the turkeys. The cattle are so peaceful to watch as they graze. Sometimes they skip around you in excitement when you move them to fresh pasture. The turkeys are so full of personality and interactive. They are curious and like to talk back to you. Seeing them strut around and fan their wings when they are only 6 inches tall is the cutest thing I have ever seen.

Favorite hobby?  Or favorite things you like to do when not working?  

Studying the Bible is one of my favorite ways to spend my time off. I also enjoy gardening, foraging, sewing, making jewelry, reading books and listening to music.

Favorite dish you like to make with a Whiffletree item?

Beef short ribs with a homemade rub are one of my favorite things to make. Slow cooked in a crock pot, they come out perfect every time. They are even delicious cold, for a quick leftovers lunch on the go.

More from the blog

Budget Series: 3 Ways to Use a Whole Chicken (Part 2)

Budget Series: 3 Ways to Use a Whole Chicken (Part 2)

Next up on this budget series, we’ll learn how to roast a chicken in a crockpot. This super easy way of cooking a chicken will ensure dinner is on the table without any hassle for you! Easy Crock pot Chicken: Ingredients: 1 whole chicken (I used a 6lb chicken - the bigger you go, the more meat you get out of it for about the same amount of time put into prepping it) Salt and pepper, to taste Optional: herbs, garlic, onion, etc. Get creative! Directions: 1. Place the chicken into a large crockpot. For the 6lb chicken, I used an 8 quart crock pot. Just enough space! Add any seasonings or herbs your heart desires. No need to add water - the chicken will release water as it cooks! 2. Turn the settings to low. 3. And let it cook for six hours or until the internal temp of the thigh is 165! Carve and serve with some gravy or bbq, or shred it to use in other recipes. ***For a whole chicken, the rule of thumb is about an hour per pound of chicken on the low setting. And if you’re like me and you forget to pull out your chicken to thaw ahead of time, add a half an hour per pound to that. But as always, go by temp instead of time to make sure you don’t get a dry chicken! It really is that easy. I made this chicken to prep for writing this blog post yesterday. I was at work, doing my work for the day and also prepping to leave for a week’s visit home to MN over Father’s Day. When I went to get my chicken to cook it, it was actually still mostly frozen. I had planned for it to be thawed, but I had forgotten to pull it out in time. Oh well, I popped it into the crockpot and just hoped for the best in the middle of a chaotic day. The day was super busy - packing orders to go out on deliveries the next day, processing chickens, and getting everything planned ahead of time for while I’m away on vacation, plus all my normal daily work. Then right after work I had to meet someone in town. Then back to the farm to finish prep for deliveries tomorrow and wrap up any loose ends. Then out to my garden to water and make the plants happy. Then back home to pack, do laundry, clean, and get ready to head out in the morning. And after all that? Dinner, ready and waiting for me in my crockpot. It took about nine hours for the frozen six pound chicken to fully cook, and I didn’t even have to think about it. I shredded some, made a sourdough sandwich, then put the rest into the freezer for while I’m out of town. There you have it! Crockpot chicken for a busy gal’s or guy’s life. It’ll be your best friend! Pro tip: Get a timer for your outlet to plug your crockpot into! Then you can set the timer for when you want it to start and end cooking. That way it’s done when you have time to take care of it. Drop a comment below and let me know how it goes for you! Cheers! ~Bethany

Read more
Budget Series: 3 Ways to Use a Whole Chicken (Part 1)

Budget Series: 3 Ways to Use a Whole Chicken (Part 1)

Cook a whole chicken? Sure, it’s more budget friendly, but… how and what do you do with it? This month, we’ll be kickstarting a budgeting series with a few different ways to use a whole chicken. Trust me, it’s actually super easy, and I think it saves more time! Per pound, the price of a whole chicken is much more budget-friendly than getting parts. For example, thighs are going for $14.00 per pound, but a whole chicken is $6.50 per pound! There will be four parts to this blog series. This week, we’ll learn how easy it is to roast a pasture-raised chicken that isn’t dry and tasteless. Get ready to save on time and money! Easy Roasted Whole Chicken Ingredients: 1 whole chicken (I used a 5.5 lb chicken) 2 Tbsp butter, melted Salt and pepper to taste 4 garlic cloves, whole Instructions: 1. Preheat your oven to 350 F. 2. Place a roasting rack in a 9x13 pan (optional, but helps the chicken get a crispier skin). Pat your chicken dry with a paper towel and place breast side down on the rack. Using a pastry brush, spread the melted butter all over the chicken, then sprinkle with salt and pepper (you can also get creative and do a few different seasonings or herbs, like thyme, paprika, etc.). Next, place your garlic cloves inside the cavity of the chicken. 3. Set the pan on the middle rack of your oven. Roast the chicken for about 1.5 hours (about 16 minutes per lb), or until the thermometer reads 160 in the breast and 165 in the thigh. Make sure to stick the thermometer in the meatiest part of the breast or thigh! As always, go by the temperature rather than the time - the time can vary, so you really want to be paying attention to the temp so you don’t overcook. *If you have a smaller chicken, the time will be less for it to fully cook, so adjust the time by multiplying the total weight of the chicken by 16 minutes, and that will give you an estimate of how long it will take.  4. The opportunities are endless! You can either serve it as a roast chicken for dinner along with some mashed potatoes and roast veggies, or you can shred it to use in any chicken dish you want! I cooked up a 5.5lb chicken for one of our team lunches and shredded it all to use in a version of chicken pot pie (homemade biscuits topped with a chicken pot pie filling - I know, not really a pot pie but it tastes the same!). It fed 14 people hungry from a day of hard work on the farm. So it can stretch a long ways! And I saved the bones and skin so I can make a broth out of that. Nothing goes to waste! If I don’t have people to feed and it’s just me, then I find this saves time and money because I can cook a big chicken all at once, shred it, and then portion it out and freeze what I won’t use right away. That way during the week I can just grab out a bag of already cooked and shredded chicken to make a quick meal out of. And there you have it! One easy way of cooking a whole chicken and prepping for more than one meal at a time. Next week, we’ll show you how to make a crockpot version of a whole chicken. Stay tuned! Cheers to you and your health…and your wallet! ~Bethany

Read more
Return To Top

WAYS TO SHOP

BUY BULK

MORE @ WHIFFLETREE

4-Animal-Row.png


Whiffletree Farm

8717 Springs Road
Warrenton VA 20186
(540) 935-0600

info@whiffletreefarmva.com

Store Hours: M - F 11AM to 5PM; Sa 10AM to 5PM